26th July 2015 - Important Current Affairs updates

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International Affairs

Tunisia's parliament has adopted a new anti-terror law which seeks to counter the threat posed by Islamist militants.
- The move follows two deadly attacks on tourism sites - a beach and hotel at Sousse in June and the Bardo Museum in Tunis in March.
- Under the new law, those convicted of terrorism could face the death penalty and expressions of support for terrorism are a jailable offence.

National Affairs

Nation pays tribute to martyrs on 16th Kargil Victory Day (Kargil Vijay Diwas) today.
- Kargil Vijay Diwas is named after the success of Operation Vijay.
- This day is is celebrated on 26 July every year in honour of the Kargil War's Heroes.
- On this day, 26 July 1999, India successfully took command of the high outposts which had been lost to Pakistani intruders.
- The Kargil war was fought for more than 60 days, ended on 26 July 1999.
- Defence Minister, 3 service chiefs pay tribute to Kargil heroes at Amar Jawan Jyoti.
- - Defense Minister : Manohar Parrikar
  - Chief of the Air Staff : Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha
  - Chief of the Army Staff : General Dalbir Singh Suhag
  - Chief of the Naval Staff : Admiral R K Dhowan
Social activist Anna Hazare today joined ex-servicemen's protest against delay in the implementation of One Rank One Pension scheme (OROP).
In Himachal Pradesh, the traditional Minjar fair began today.
- This fair is organized to thank god and ask his blessings for a good yield.
- Folk singing including Kunjari Malhar and dancing would be the highlights of this one week long fair.
Jammu and Kashmir government will appoint over 800 doctors and 4,000 paramedics within next four months, besides setting a medical college in Kashmir Valley’s Anantnag district.
- J& K Chief Minister : Mufti Mohammad Sayeed

Business & Economy

The European Union has banned the marketing of around 700 generic medicines for alleged manipulation of clinical trials conducted by India's pharmaceutical research company GVK Biosciences.
- The largest EU-wide suspension of sales and distribution of generic drugs ordered by the European Commission will come into effect on August 21 and it will be applicable to all 28 member nations, according to Germany's drug regulator, the Federal Institute for Medicines and Medical Products (BfArM).
- The commission's decision taken last week is in response to a recommendation by the EU drug regulator European Medicines Agency (EMA) in January that marketing authorization of these drugs should be suspended as they were based on clinical trial data allegedly manipulated by the Hyderabad-based company.
- EMA's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) had examined the marketing authorisation given to over 1,000 generic drugs from EU member nations on the basis of bio-equivalence studies conducted by GVK Bio during the period between 2004 and 2014 after an inspection of the company's facility in Hyderabad by the French Medicines Agency (ANSM) in May, last year showed "systematic manipulation of clinical trial data."

Science & Technology

China has successfully tested the power system of a fifth generation carrier rocket scheduled for flight next year carrying twice the capacity of the payload by the present carrier.
- The rocket will have a payload capacity of 25 tonnes to low Earth orbits, or 14 tonnes to geostationary transfer orbit, about twice the current capacity.
China launched two new satellites into space, as it builds a homegrown satellite navigation system to rival the US's Global Positioning System.
- The satellites are the 18th and 19th launched by China as it develops its domestic navigation system Beidou, or Compass.
- They take the total number launched this year to three.
Under an integrated collaborative effort, the Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change (MoEFCC) along with the state governments of Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra will soon undertake an artificial breeding programme for the Great Indian Bustard (GIB), one of the critically endangered flying bird species in the world, to boost the population of the species.

Awards & Honors

Himalayan peak 5260 set to be named after mountaineer Veteran mountaineer Nalini Sengupta.
- She is set to become the first Puneite to have a Himalyan peak christened in her honour.
- Trekkers of Giripremi, a noted mountaineering institute in the city, conquered peak 5260 in the Hamta pass region in Himalayas and decided to name it as “Mount Nalini”, to salute her persistent efforts to inculcate mountaineering in youngsters since 1970.

Deaths

Veteran leader of the Republican Party of India and former governor of Bihar, Sikkim and Kerala, Ramkrishna Suryabhan Gavai (86) passed away.

Sports

Indian women wrestling team bag silver in the Kazakhstan Presidential Cup.
- The team received a prize money of USD 10,000 along with a trophy and medals for its effort.
- Host country Kazakhstan bagged the top spot, while Mangolia settled for the third position.